"Because the situation here is abnormal, I won't waste words. I'll go straight to the point."
Tione's expression was serious as she spoke.
"To obtain the water from Cadmus Spring, we must defeat its guardian-the Cadmus. There is no other way."
She paused briefly.
"And you all know the Cadmus's strength. In terms of raw power, it's even stronger than the Floor Bosses we've faced."
As soon as she finished, Tiona followed up with a bright grin.
"I even have experience being blown away by it and having my insides scrambled!"
...Good grief.
Only you could laugh about something like that.
Shirou almost retorted, but ultimately held back. He knew Tione wasn't emphasizing the danger for herself or Tiona.
It was for him.
And Lefiya.
So this wasn't the time to joke.
"Tione," Ais asked calmly, "how do we fight it?"
Tione answered without hesitation.
"Same plan as usual. Ais, Tiona, and I suppress the Cadmus's attacks from the front."
She glanced back.
"Lefiya and Shirou will suppress it with magic from the rear."
"Once it's scared and loses momentum, we finish it in one burst."
Then she added firmly,
"So this time, Lefiya, Shirou-we're relying entirely on you."
"Don't worry."
"Yes... y-yes!"
With everyone in agreement, Tione led the group forward.
Before long, they arrived at the chamber at the end of the passage.
Cadmus Spring was inside.
The five slowed their steps, suppressing their presence as much as possible, and cautiously peeked in.
And then-
Ais frowned.
"...It's too quiet."
Before anyone could stop her, she stepped directly into the room.
"Ais!"
Tione and the others immediately followed.
What greeted them inside was completely unexpected.
The towering trees that once filled the chamber were shattered.
Not broken.
Crushed.
Reduced into fragments so small they were closer to debris than wood.
The surrounding walls and ground had been ground down as well, as if something had scraped and pulverized everything indiscriminately.
But the most disturbing detail-
Traces of melting.
Everywhere.
"This was done by the New Species."
Shirou spoke immediately.
On the Fifty-First Floor, there were no other monsters capable of melting matter so thoroughly.
Tione and the others began examining the area around the spring.
And then-
"Is this... the Cadmus's corpse?"
Tione looked at the astonishing amount of ash on the ground, comparing it to her memory of the Cadmus's size.
The conclusion was unavoidable.
At the same time, Ais noticed something. She stepped forward and swept her hand through the ashes.
A membrane shimmered into view.
Golden light.
A dragon wing membrane.
Cadmus's Hide.
An extremely rare drop item.
Even after the Cadmus's death, it only appeared with a very low probability.
"It really is the Cadmus's corpse..."
Tione's unease deepened.
"Quickly. Collect the spring water. We leave immediately."
Everything here was wrong.
Far too wrong.
"Yes!"
Shirou and Lefiya immediately took out the specialized containers and began collecting the spring water.
Because the Cadmus hadn't used it, the amount remaining far exceeded their expectations.
"It looks like we won't need to visit another location," Lefiya said softly. "This should be enough."
"Agreed."
Once the containers were sealed, the five wasted no time.
They left the chamber and hurried back along the path they came from.
"...Who do you think killed the Cadmus?" Tiona asked.
"Normally, you'd say other monsters, right?" she added casually.
Tione brushed off the question vaguely, her thoughts already elsewhere.
Recalling the strange occurrences on this floor, her expression darkened.
"It's definitely an Anomalous State. I just don't know what form it's taken."
Shirou's vigilance rose to its peak.
If they were going to encounter a New Species-
It would be on the way back.
With heavy thoughts hanging over them, the group continued forward.
Then-
"Ah-!!!"
A scream echoed through the labyrinth.
All five froze.
"...Raul!"
They spoke in unison.
Without hesitation, they broke into a run toward the source of the scream.
Moments later, the monsters came into view.
Yellow-green bodies.
Caterpillar-like forms.
Along both sides of their bodies stretched over a dozen legs, like a grotesque fusion of caterpillar and centipede.
These were monsters Tione and the others had never seen before.
New Species.
Shirou's eyes sharpened.
So they'd finally shown themselves.
Without waiting for orders, Tiona gripped her great double-bladed axe and charged forward.
"Stop, Tiona!"
Finn's voice rang out just in time.
But Tiona didn't slow down.
She plunged her axe straight into the monster's body.
And then-
The axe melted.
The great double-bladed axe worth one hundred and twenty million Valis liquefied in her hands.
"Ah-! My axe!"
Tiona screamed.
"This isn't how you play the game!"
"Didn't Finn tell you not to rush in, you idiot?!"
Bete shouted while being chased by one of the monsters, shooting her an exasperated look.
Seeing the scene, Shirou almost laughed.
How could someone be this fearless?
Reuniting with the second team, the Loki Familia's nine-person elite squad immediately began retreating at full speed.
"Hey-hey-Finn!" Tiona yelled while running. "What the hell is that thing?! My weapon!"
"I don't know!" Finn replied sharply. "We were ambushed too!"
Shirou glanced back, his expression tightening.
"There are a lot of them," he said urgently. "By my count-over a hundred."
"What?!"
Tiona's eyes nearly popped out.
She had thought there was only one.
One was already bad enough.
A hundred?
"Why can't I see them?!"
"I have a skill," Shirou replied flatly. "Do you?"
Clairvoyance sharply enhanced his vision.
What he saw, others simply couldn't.
"Captain, are you alright?!"
"We're fine," Finn answered grimly. "But Raul is badly injured. He was directly hit by that liquid."
Everyone turned.
Gareth was carrying Raul over his shoulder.
Raul's condition was horrifying.
His body was limp.
A foul odor wafted from him.
His skin-and even his light armor-had partially melted.
What remained was discolored, nearly black-purple flesh.
A single hit.
And a veteran LV.4 was already on the verge of death.
Everyone's alertness spiked instantly.
They absolutely could not be hit.
"Look," Shirou said quickly. "These New Species even attacked the Black Rhinos along the way."
"That anomaly we ran into earlier-it was probably caused by them."
Hearing this, Tione immediately relayed the information to Finn.
"...So that's it," Finn muttered. "To think something like that could even kill the Cadmus."
"What a monster..."
The fleeing group tore through the labyrinth like headless chickens, barely maintaining formation.
Then Ais suddenly spoke.
"Finn," she asked calmly, "can we defeat them?"
The question made everyone look at him.
Finn paused for a second.
Then he answered honestly.
"The attacks themselves work," he said. "But like what just happened to Tiona-losing a weapon every time we attack is far too costly."
The answer was clear.
They could fight.
But they couldn't afford to.
And so-
Escape was the only option.
--------More Bonus Chapters!!!!
Every 300 power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter